Author: Kai Shomo
The corruption of this case
This great place we call America has never been generous to a lot of its melanated people. Ever since Mr. Columbus hit the shores of this continent, our people have been under attack. So this is why the term M.ake A.merica G.reat A.gain is such an issue. Because if you are considered "people of color, "it hasn't been so great. During slavery, poor whites (some were slaves or servants) were appointed to the overseer (officer) position to keep the slaves in line. Some officers (overseer) are assaulting, arresting, and killing these people of color descendants up to the present day. Many choose to oppose this with statements like "but he was a felon" or "the cop was doing his job." Neither of these is a justification for murder. Let's go on to the case at hand.
What is the Difference between Slave Patrols and Modern Day Policing? Institutional Violence in a Community of Color? Marlese Durr https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0896920515594766
Breonna Taylor was a 26-year-old active E.M.T. in the city of Louisville, Kentucky. The home town of the G.O.A.T. Muhammad Ali and my grandmother. I've been to the town a few times in my life. Breonna Taylor's home was the target of a police investigation. A "no-knock search warrant" was issued to the young lady's resident by the Louisville Metro Police Department. After police entered her apartment, her boyfriend claims he thought someone was breaking in. He fired one shot, which caused the police officers to return fire. Taylor was hit and killed by the officers return fire. The outcome is what we have become accustomed to. Our brothers and sisters die at the hands of police officers. Before we know the whole story, our 1st thoughts are damn not again. The two sides of the story still, even after the verdict, haven't been entirely told. So it leaves room for conspiracies and false allegations. https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/23/us/breonna-taylor-police-shooting-invs/index.html
I like to dig deep into the rabbit hole from my research to see what carrots I can find. What I find are the investigation reports. Her only crime was dating a thug. Jamarcus Glover was a known drug dealer in the city; he and Taylor had a relationship that made her a target in the L.M.P.D. (Louisville Metro Police Department) investigation. This is what led to a search warrant on her apartment. But at the time of the incident, Glover was not in her apartment. Her current boyfriend was there. He was not the drug dealer. He was a licensed gun holder.
Glover told police Taylor had nothing to do with the alleged drug trade. "The police are trying to make it out to be my fault & turning the whole community out here against me, making it look like I brought this to Breonna's, "Glover told the news outlet. "There was never anything there, and at the end of the day, they went about it the wrong way and lied on that search warrant and shot that girl out there," Glover said.
The officers involved, in this case, are not law-abiding citizens themselves. Officer Brett Hankinson is currently being accused of sexual harassment. Since early June, at least two women have said Hankinson sexually assaulted them in nearly identical stories. One of the women, Margaret Borders, wrote in a Facebook post that Hankinson offered her a ride home in 2018 after being drunk at a bar. "He drove me home in uniform, in his unmarked car, invited himself into my apartment and sexually assaulted me while I was unconscious."
The other women had almost the same allegations toward Hankinson. L.M.P.D. has a history
of corruption from officers stealing overtime money, possession of child porn. It's been addressed that the officers said they did not wear body cameras that night, which may have been right but not honest. Because after the trial, body cam video from other officers raises additional questions about the raid's conduct.
Brett Hankinson, the only officer, indicted by the grand jury, entered Taylor's apartment after the shooting to ask about and comment on the evidence there and left the scene of the crime, all in violation of department policy. From my extensive research and talking to people from the community, this police department has a history of hiring & employing officers who don't receive proper training. Officers are hired due to their affiliation with family members or close friends officers. https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/hidden-plain-sight-racism-white-supremacy-and-far-right-militancy-law
This leads to protection for them from their fellow officers, so it usually gets covered up and disappears when they do illegal acts. This is a problem in many small towns and cities across our country. The citizens are fed up and tired of being killed by the ones they pay to protect them. Things like defunding the police become hashtags on social media and in the streets. But is this possible when our communities are plagued with years of crime and poverty. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/06/03/10-things-we-know-about-race-and-policing-in-the-u-s/
If there is no police presence, will we stand up and protect our neighborhoods or continue the criminal activity? As of now, Breonna Taylor has no justice for her death. Her family received some financial restitution, but that will not bring her back or stop the corruption that's infected the police department's across this country.
Author: Kai Shomo Oct 30, 2020